Excavation
by The Renowned Obscurity
Summary: Sinnoh's Underground was the last place anyone expected Gardenia to be - and the last place she wanted to be. But things take a turn for the better -or is it the worst?- when she runs into Roark and requests for his help... :MossShipping::RoarkxGardenia:


**I finally got around to finishing my MossShipping one-shot! Hooray! It's my other favorite Sinnoh Gym Leader couple, besides VolknerxCandice.**

**I realized Gardenia is prone to getting hurt a lot in this story, but oh well. For it makes for fluffy MossShipping scenes!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Sadly. I also don't own Nintendo or the Wii System. Well I mean, I own a Wii but I don't like… **_**own **_**it, ya know?**

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**The Underground is Dangerous**

Gardenia grumbled in frustration as she aimlessly wandered the dimly lit tunnels of Sinnoh's Underground. She had been traversing the snaking corridors for a good hour now and had accomplished next to nothing. She wasn't even sure what she was supposed to be doing in the first place.

"Why I am even down here anyway?" Gardenia wondered out loud to anyone who happened to be listening. Which was no one, so she had pretty much resorted to talking to herself.

"Oh yeah," she replied to her own question, "It's all that stupid Underground Man's fault!" Gardenia began to recall the conversation she had with Eterna City's resident Underground expert just an hour or so before. She grumbled once more as she dragged her feet across the dirt.

"I much rather be in the forest…"

But instead of complaining more, she pulled out her Underground Radar and decided to give digging up treasure one more shot. Gardenia spied a blinking dot on the radar's screen, not too far ahead. Standing before the slightly bulging section of the wall, she pulled out the hammer found in her Explorer Kit.

Gardenia began to recklessly pound away at the wall until it crumbled right before her eyes, no Sphere or treasure even _slightly_ revealed. She slumped down against the hard wall and slid to the dirt floor.

"Give up Gardenia," she told herself, being uncharacteristically pessimistic. "The Underground just isn't your scene…" Letting out an audible sigh, she continued to mope. "If only _he_ were here…"

Gardenia proceeded to lay her head on her knees, which were pulled tightly to her chest. She was so overwhelmed with self-pity, that she did not notice the footsteps echoing through the empty tunnels.

"Gardenia?" A familiar, yet puzzled voice abruptly said. Shocked, the Grass-type Gym Leader jumped up, but instead slammed her head on something incredibly hard. She clutched her most-likely bright red forehead in pain, and sank back down to the ground.

"Oh no! Gardenia! I am so sorry!" The voice, that Gardenia was able to peg as Roark's, was laced with panic and guilt. The girl on the floor only groaned in reply.

"Why is your head so hard?" Gardenia managed to say. She forced one eye open to look up and him, and tried to smile.

"Right. Hard-hat. Gotcha."

Roark moved her dainty hand from her forehead to inspect the damage.

"It's just red," he remarked.

"I'll be fine," Gardenia replied. She took his gloved hand and stood up. "Actually, I'm glad to have…run into you. You're actually the guy I was hoping to find!" She laughed as Roark fumbled to prevent his glasses from falling off his face.

"L-looking? For m-me?" he stuttered, blushing. "But why?"

"Well," Gardenia began to explain, "I was wandering around Eterna, as things at the Gym have been rather slow lately, when I was approached by that old Underground Man. He's all to blame for this." She crossed her arms in annoyance.

"You mean my grandfather?" Roark interjected. Gardenia turned red and laughed with embarrassment.

"That's your grandpa?" she asked, still chuckling. "Heh, I had no idea. Well it doesn't matter who he is right?" She flashed a quick smile, which she hoped appeared innocent enough.

"Anyway, he told me I spend too much time in Eterna Forest and should embrace the other aspects of the city or something like that. I tried to explain to him I visited the museum and the Legendary statues often… But apparently by that, he meant I should go to the Underground. So he shoved an Explorer Kit in my face and told me to do some things to learn the basics. Digging up Spheres and building a Secret Base and the like. As you may have guessed, I haven't been very successful. Like at all, for that matter."

"And this is where I come in?" Roark asked, adjusting his helmet. Gardenia nodded vigorously.

"Yes! Could you please show me the ropes? I know you'll be just the perfect guy for the job!" She clasped his hands in hers and stared into his bespectacled eyes pleadingly. Roark felt himself starting to blush again, so he quickly pulled his hands away and chuckled nervously.

"Sure I can, I guess," he replied, trying to overcome the rapid pounding of his heart. He managed to regain his composure and began his lesson. "First, maybe you could start out by showing me your technique now?"

"No problem!" Gardenia spotted another area of the wall that appeared to be bulging outward and began to pound away with the hammer. Before she knew it, the wall came crashing down. Roark raised one eyebrow and tried to hold back a fit of laughter.

"Have you ever heard of a pick-axe?"

Gardenia scowled at the reddish-brown haired boy, trying to hide the scarlet spreading across her pale features. But her hard look was replaced with a kinder one as she let out a laugh.

"I guess I didn't realize it was in there!"

After a few more practice trials, this time employing the abilities of the pickaxe, Gardenia finally had success. She saw the glinting of a jewel that was partially obscured by dirt and rocks. Digging rapidly into the wall, an entire Sphere was revealed. She cradled the miniscule emerald Sphere in her palm and admired it with wide, orange-colored eyes.

"Roark look!" Gardenia exclaimed. She turned to the Rock-type Gym Leader who was excavating in the wall opposite of her. He rotated quickly, nearly blinding Gardenia with the light pouring from the flashlight on his helmet. She held up the Green Sphere between two fingers, showing it off to Roark.

"My first Sphere!"

Roark gave her a smile. "Congratulations! You're on your way to becoming an expert miner!" He then directed his attention back to the wall he was working in, and a few moments later, uncovered a green gem that was easily three times the size of Gardenia's.

"No fair!" Gardenia exclaimed, suddenly disappointed with her pint-sized prize.

"I guess I just got lucky," Roark replied, rubbing the back of his red miner's hat. "I have another idea though. How about we establish your Secret Base?"

"A Secret Base?! Sounds awesome!"

"Do you have a Digger Drill?"

Gardenia began to search through the Explorer Kit once again. "I'm pretty sure he gave me one…" Her face lit up as she pulled out the compact drill.

"Now pick a place to make your Base," Roark said.

"Can I see yours first?"

"Um, sure," he replied. "It's actually not too far away from here…"

Roark led the girl to an opening in a rock wall, which was the entrance to his Secret Base. Gardenia crawled through the small hole, with Roark following behind. Gardenia's eyes widened at the sight of his elaborately decorated base.

"What an adorable doll!" she exclaimed, grasping and hugging the Turtwig doll that had been placed next to a stuffed Bonsly.

"But why would _you_ of all people have a Turtwig doll?" she questioned.

"Oh, no reason," Roark replied, turning his head away from her curious gaze, attempting to conceal his blush.

"You could so crash here one night!" she said suddenly, changing the subject.

Gardenia plopped herself down on the blue couch in the center of the cavern. It was facing a TV with a Nintendo Wii attached, that she noticed, upon closer inspection, was fake. Roark had adorned his base with large gems and crystals, ranging in hue from red to blue to yellow. The computer and the golden flag placed on a table in the back caught Gardenia's attention.

"What's the flag for?" she asked.

"Every Secret Base has its own flag," he answered, "If you have friends in the Underground, you can play a version of Capture the Flag. The more flags you steal, the more room you can have in your Base."

"Awesome! I want to make my Base now!"

"Alright, well lets find a suitable location."

"Can it be near yours? You know, in case I ever need more help?

"S-sure," Roark replied, caught off guard by her request. This girl sure knew how to make him blush like mad… He led Gardenia around a corner, pointing to a spot. "How about here?"

"This is just fine," she said, pulling out the Digger Drill and hollowing out a hole into the wall. Stepping into her new Base, Gardenia frowned. It was empty, as was expected, and giant boulders were strewn everywhere.

"It's so bland…" she remarked. "Where can I get decorations?"

"I'm sure my grandfather will give you some if you told him you completed his tasks. Oh, and there are also hikers around in the Underground that will trade you Goods for Spheres."

Gardenia nodded and told Roark she wanted to look for more Spheres on her own for a bit. She smiled mischievously as she rounded the corner, heading for Roark's Secret Base. Luckily the boy was gullible enough so Gardenia could easily get her hands on his flag.

She was about to walk into his Base when she heard a small _ping_ noise and was flung backwards. A startled scream could be heard as Gardenia flew towards a wall. But she was stopped as she set off yet another Trap. Razor-sharp leaves were summoned from out of nowhere and swirled around Gardenia dangerously. A few grazed her hands and face, slicing the skin.

Roark ran to her immediately, blowing and waving away the leaves.

"Maybe I should've set a Foam Trap instead," he muttered, frowning at the bleeding cuts.

Roark knelt down next to Gardenia's body and examined the wounds. He pulled out a med-kit he always carried with him in case of accidents in the mines and began attending to Gardenia.

"What just happened?" she asked dazed, wincing as Roark applied antiseptic.

"Well in the Underground…you can set Traps to keep people out of your Secret Base…" He trailed off, his voice having a slightly guilty air to it. "I guess you ran into mine…"

He finished bandaging the cuts and pulled Gardenia to her feet.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay? I'm so sorry this happened! It's the second time I've hurt you today…" Roark looked at his feet and rubbed the toe of his boot into the dirt.

"I'm fine really," she replied with a smile, "But thanks for caring; it's cute."

Gardenia leaned forward and kissed Roark gently on the cheek, near the corner of this mouth. A blush spread across his face and his glasses slipped off the bridge of his nose. Gardenia pulled away and grinned at the blushing Gym Leader.

"Again, I'm really grateful for what you've done for me. But I think I've had enough of the Underground for one day…" She laughed, and then readied herself to return to the surface. "Maybe we can do this again some other time. And maybe next time, I could be the one teaching you a few things."

Gardenia winked, causing Roark to turn and even darker shade of red. She vanished as she was transported back to the surface. Roark lightly touch the spot where the other Gym Leader had just placed her soft lips. He smiled goofily, still dazed, completely unaware of the torture he would undergo the next time he ran into Gardenia…

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**Am I the only one who thinks those Traps in the Underground are potentially dangerous? I mean, flames and sharp leaves and falling boulders…**

**Anyway, there will be a sequel (or two) if you couldn't already tell, but I have no clue when they will be up. Maybe if you guys voted in my poll, I could decide! Oh, and if you left a review as well. :D**


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